Car-coupling



` UNTTnn STATES FATENT @Tarea TRUSTEE, OF 4ALLEGrIzIENY CITY, PENNSYLVANIA.

cAR-ooUPLiNG.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 295,483, dated March 18, 1884.

Application filed January 3, 1884. (No model.)

erence being had to the accompanying drawvIO ings, forming a partof this specification, in Which- My invention relates to couplings-employed in connecting railroad-cars, and has reference to that class of couplings shown in Letters Patent granted to me February 28, 1882, No. 254,107, and March 6, 1883, N os. 273,664 and 273,343, in which were illustrated in different forms bifurcated draw-heads having shouldered interlocking lever pivoted or journaled at the end of onejaw, the lever having an operating-arm extending back and connected at its end with` apparatus for withdrawing thelever. In Letters Patent No. 273,664 the interlocking lever is pivoted to the entering jaw of the draw-head by a pin passingthrough hinging-leaves on the jaw and lever, and an opening is formed in thisjaW and a locking -lever for the reception of a coupling-link, the pivoting-pin being also employed in forming a couplingwithinthislink. Vhenthe coupling is thus constructed, as the hingingfleaves of the locking-lever form the upper and lower Walls of the opening for the co11pling-link,and the back Wall of said opening is formed in said locking-lever, it is evident that the combined pivoting and coupling pin is liable to be bent M or injured both by draft -strain and jar in backing, as the jar on the locking-lever is transmitted throughvthe leaves to the pin, and if the pin is bent the coupling is rendered inoperative. The jar on the locking-lever is also liable to break off the leaves thereof, as its only support is from the pivotingpin. This coupling also requires careful and exact tting to operate properly, and is consequently expensive to build. In Letters Patent No.

273,343 some of these difficulties are overcome, as the locking-lever is journaled within the entering jaw without the employment of the pivoting-pin, a journal-face on the lockinglever-Working against or Within one face of a recess Within said jaw, back of `its solid end,

locking-lever, instead of the ordinary flat spring shown in said patent, as ,the flat spring is liable toloseits elasticity on account of jarring of the cars. The objects of myinvention are to improve the construction of these couplers in these particulars, and also to other- Wise simplify and improve their construction.

It consists, essentially, in j ournaling thelocking-lever Within arecess Within the entering j aw r against one face or end of said recess, and forming the opening forthe coupling-link in the said jaWandlocking-lever,andthecoupling-pinhole through the jaw and front of the journalingrecess, so that any draft-strain on said pin cannot affect the action of the locking-lever, and the jar in backing, if it comes against the looking-lever, cannot injure it or the journal thereof.

It also consists in certain improvements -in the construction of the entering jaw of the draw head and the locking lever, to add strength to the jaw.

It also consists in employing a spring having one or more coils therein secured in the draw-head neck for projecting the locking-le- Ver, and incertain improvements in the spring and the means of securing it in place.

It also consists in providing the draw-head-go with an operating-bar supported on or passing through the draw-head and extending out on each side thereof, and connected with the interlockinglever, so that it may be Withdrawn by sliding said bar on or through the drawhead.

It also consists in supporting said operating-bar and the entire mechanism for operating said interlocking lever and for holding it in position to couple or uncouple Within the draw-head.

It also consists in certain` other improve- IOO ments in the draw-head and coupling apparatus hereinafterspecifically described.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will describe the same more fully, referring to the accompanying drawings, in which-'- Y Figure lis a view of two draw-heads coupled, one being shown in plan view and the other by a horizontal centra-l section, thus illustrating the internal arrangements of the coupling. Fig. 2 is a bottom longitudinal section of one draw-head, showing the interlocking lever in its uncoupled position. Fig. 3 is a cross-section on the line a; x, Fig. l. Fig. 4 is a side view, the clasping-jaw being broken away, showing the interlocking lever in the entering jaw. Fig. 5 is a like view, the interlocking and sliding bar being removed. Fig. 6 is a horizontal section of the entering jaw on the line y y, Fig. 5^. Fig. 7 is a perspective view, and Fig. 8 a side view, of the interlocking lever. Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the sliding bar; and Fig. l() is a cross-section of the draw-head, showing the sliding bar supported on the top thereof.

In the drawings referred to, A represents the draw-head, which is formed bifurcated, having the entering jaw a, claspingjaw e', and recess between them to receive the entering jaw of the opposite draw-head, the forward end of the clasping-jaw being curved outwardly to act as a guide for the enteringjaw of the opposite draw-head. The jaw a carries the locking-lever B, the said lever being journaled in the recess c, which is formed in the entering jaw back of the nose thereof, the said recess o having the convex facelc, around which the interlocking lever is journaled, and the said A interlocking lever having the operating-arm b, which extends back within the draw-head, and by means of which the interlocking lever is operated. These parts are described and shown, substantially, in my Letters Patent No. 273,343, dated March 6, 1883. The entering `jaw in that patent, however, was formed with a solid end, so as to impart strength to the coupling, and the concave face of the interlocking lever was made continuous and provided with a centrallip, by means of which the lever was held wit-hin the recess.

In the coupling as now constructed, in order to arrange means for securing the ordinary coupling-link in the entering jaw a, I have formed in the nose of said enteringjaw the opening d, the said opening extending across the nose thereof and into the face of the locking-lever B, as at d', and through the nose of said entering jaw isthe vertical couplingpin hole cl2, through which the pin d3 extends in connecting the link therewith. As the nose of the entering jaw may be weakened to some extent by the said opening d, I have formed the ribs c, extending across the recess c in said jaw, these ribs serving to strengthen the nose of the jaw and compensate for the weakening thereof by the formation of the opening d. As the formation of this coupling-pin opening d requires the changing of the holding-lip of theinterlocking lever, I have formed the said lever as shown in perspective, Fig. 7, being grooved on the back, as at b, so as to iit around the ribs c2 in the recess c, and provided with the lips b2 at the ends thereof beyond the concave face, and thelips b3 on either side of the opening d in the face thereof, for the coupling-link before referred to. By this construction the interlocking lever is held in the recess c of the jaw, its concave face fitting against the convex side of said recess, and its lips b2 b3 extending up into extensions of said recess c, and thus holding the interlocking lever within the recess. t

In the side of the recess c, opposite the journaling-face thereof, are formed the curved faces c, which are substantially part of the circle drawn from the center of the movement of the interlocking lever, andthe said lever is provided on each side of its operating-arm b with the shoulder e, which fits against the said curved faces c, and thus hold the interlocking lever within the recess c, except when the lever is thrown sufficiently forward to draw the shoulders c out of the-recess, when the lever b may be withdrawn from the entering jaw, as is described in the said Letters Patent No. 273,343. The opening d in the entering jaw is made on the inside thereof, and where it extends into the interlocking lever, as at d', the opening therein is formed concave, so that the coupling-link may extend into the interlocking lever, and in case ofjar on said link the pressure will come centrally on the lever and be transmitted through the shoulders e and curved faces t3 to the drawhead without in any way affecting the pivotalv In the patents obtained by me March,

1883, the spring employed for projecting the interlocking lever was what is termed a flat spring,77 this spring being employed in order to secure it within the draw-head. This form of spring is, however, liable to lose its power, especially in parts subject to the jar or vibration of the cars, and I have devised a means for securing within the draw-head a rod-spring which is not subject to the" objections before referred to. This spring g is secured in the neck of the draw-head and teats or lugs h, and is provided with the coils g', which fit over these lugs and thus hold the springs to place. Ihe spring employed is shown substantially in Figs. 1 and 5, and it has ends extending from said coil and resting against the body or walls of the drawhead at any suitable point, in order to have a hold for the spring. From the opposite' side ICO IIO

spring is much more elastic and less liable to breakage than the flat spring, as shown inthe said patent, as when any pressure comes upon them it is taken by the coils of the spring, and for this reason the spring is found much more durable and less liable to lose its power on account of the jarring or vibration of the coup` ling. It also does away with the necessity of the longitudinal face in the entering jaw, against which the end of the springpressed, as shown in said patents, and enables me to form the said jaw much stronger, as well as overcomes the necessity of planing said horizontal face, which was difficult on account of its position in the draw-head.

The operating-arm b may be connected to the regular lever on the car platform or body, as shown in the patents above operated thereby; Where, however, the coupling is employed for freight-cars, I prefer to employ operating mechanism which is supported by the draw-head, so that the entire operating apparatus of the coupling may be located in or on the draw-head, and the ne-4 cessity of connection with the .body of the car be done away with. This I have accomplished by the employment of the sliding bar 7c, which slides in journals or guides j' at the back of the draw-head, and which is connected with the operating-arm b of the interlocking lever, so that the said lever may be withdrawn `by sliding said bar in or on thedraw-head. The exact construction of said bar is shown in Fig.

`9, the said bar having the arms Z extending out toward the sides of the car, and the bar being preferably made of suc-h length that it can be reached by the brakeman from the side of theicar Without the necessity of entering between the cars. and yet is not so long as to extend into the road of the brakeman in other operations. I prefer to have it of such length that the handles are about an arms length from the sides of the car, and that the arms Z are under the body thereof and so protected from injury, as is shown by dotted lines, Fi l.

The bar is provided with a hole, on, into which the lug m on the end ofthe operatingarm b fits, lthis being found by me the most simple and durable connection between slid ing bar and the interlocking lever, though of course any equivalent connection-such as a hinge or link joint-may be employed. The guides f through the draw-head correspond in width to the body k" of the bar, and the opening at one end of Vthe.mdrawhead, as at n, is

\ sufficiently large to permit the entrance of of the drawhead is smaller than said body k; but the opening at the other end the body k,

the bar being formed narrower, as at p, and

this narrow part being adapted to slide through said opening a. As the opening a is smaller the bar, might be liable to engage by gravity with` referred to, and

thus adapted to hold the interlocking leverin its uncoupled or locked position. This can be accomplished because that the body 7c of the bar is drawn almost out of the draw-head, and by pressing down on the handle beyond the body the shoulder rmay be thrown up and catch against the shoulder q, the base of the openingn acting as a fulcrum for the bar. The shoulder r is made on the upper edge of as if on the under face thereof it its locking-shoulder inv the draw-head when-` ever the bar was drawn sufficiently out. When constructed as shown, however, it will only engage with its locking-shoulder when raised up, as above described, and it is, held in con nection therewith by the pressure ofthe spring. The bar has the lug t thereon, which comes against the pin t', and thuslimits the forward motion of the bar in projecting the interlocking lever. cause in connecting the operating-arm b ofthe lever B with the sliding bar it is necessary that the bar slide forward through the head in order to permit the lug m to enter the hole m.

The construction shown is considered the most simple and compact for the purpose desired; but the bar 7.a might be mounted on top These stops t t are necessary be- IOO of the draw-head and the operating-arm be connected therewith through a suitable slot therein, as shown in Fig. 10, or other equivalent arrangement of the parts adopted, the essential point being that the bar shall be supported by the draw-head and be independent ofthe body of the car.

In yconnecting the parts the coupling-spring g is first secured in place, being4 compressed until the coils g iit over the lugs l1, within the neck of the draw-head, being held on said tcats by the tension of the spring. The slid` ing bar 7c is then passed through the opening n through the coupling until its body le iits within the gnidef thereof, and the interlock IIO ing lever is then introduced, the lug m" being 1 inserted in the hole m, and the body of the lever being inserted in the recess c, so that thejournal-faces above referred to come against each. other.` The sliding bar is then drawn back so as to draw the locking-lever into its uncoupled position, and the pin t is inserted, when the coupling is ready for operation. The pressure of the spring g on the operating-arm b carries it and the sliding bar forward until the lug t on the bar comes against the pin t', and the parts remain in this position ready for coupling, so that when the two coupling heads are brought together the faces of the interlocking levers, pressing upon each other, cause them to be pressed back into the recesses in the entering jaws, and as soon as the faces of the interlocking lever pass each other the '4' Y y 295.41m

springs throw the levers forward so that their shoulders engage to form the coupling.

`When it is desired to uncouple the cars, the

brakeman catches the handle on one or the 5 other side of the draw-head, and by drawing or pushing onthe bar causes it to dra7 aside the interlocking lever, and the shoulders q r are engaged, as above described, thus holding the interlocking lever back, so that when the cars are drawn apart the corresponding lever in the opposite draw-head Will be pressed back by the entering jaw and pass out of the drawhead.

Vhen the draw-heads come together in couping,any shock on the entering jaw is supported by the heavy nose thereon, as well as by the ribs c`z across the the journaling-recess c, and thus prevented from injuring the journal-connection of the interlocking lever.

Vhen a common coupling-link is employed, the draft-strain is communicated through the coupling-pin to the nose, where the bending of the pin or injury to the nose cannot affect the journaling of the interlocking lever, and

25 if in backing anyjar is communicated to the Vdraw-brad it is simply transmitted from the link through the interlocking lever to the draw-head Without injuring the lever in any Way.

head, out of the Way ofthe operative parts, and on account of the coiling thereof has much more elasticity than. the ordinary flat spring, ,and it is not affected by the jarring of thee-ars.

The coupling can be separated without danger to the brakeman, and yet all its operative parts are supported in or on the draw-head and independent 0f the car-body.

The parts are few, there being but five parts in all, and they are of such shape that they require no special fitting or furnishing.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

V1. The bifurcated drawhead having the entering jaw provided with an opening for a coupling-link, and a'coupling-pin hole in the nose thereof, in combination with an interlocking lever journaled in said jaw back of said coupling-pin hole,and independent thereof, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

2. The bifurcated draw-head having the entering-jaw provided with the opening d, and recess c, having 'the journaling-face c, and ridge c2 extending across said recess, in combination with the interlocking lever journaled in said recess across said face c., and having grooves b fitting over said ribs, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

3. rIhe bifurcated drawhead having the entering-jaw c, provided with the opening d, and the journaling-recess c, having the curved faces c3, in combination with the interlocking lever journaled in said recess, and having the opening d and shoulders c, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

The spring is entirely coupled in the dravv- 4. Thev combination of the bifurcated draW- head, the interlocking lever joiirnaled in the entering jaw, and having the operating-arm b, and the spring g, having one or more coils, g', and secured Within the draw head and pressing against said arm b, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

5. The combination of the bifurcated drawhead provided with teats or lugs 7L in the back thereof, the interlocking lever journaled in the entering jaw thereof, and provided With the operating-arm b, and the spring g, having the coils g', iitting over said teats and extending back of said operating-arm, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

6. In combination With a bifurcated drawhead and an interlocking lever journaled therein, and operating-bar supported in or on said draw-head and extending out on each side thereof, and connected With said interlocking lever, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

7. In combination with the bifurcated drawhead and an. interlocking lever journaled therein, a sliding bar passing transversely through said draw-head and extending out on either side thereof, and connected with said interlocking lever, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

8. In combination with the bifurcated drawhead and interlocking lever journaled therein, and having the arm b, the sliding bark,

extending transversely through said drawhead, and having the slot m, in which said arm I) fits, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

9. In combination with the bifurcated drawhead and interlocking lever journaled therein, the sliding bark, extending transversely through the draw-head and connected with the lever, and provided with suitable stop apparatus engaging with the draw-head to hold the lever in its uncoupled position, substantialiy as and for the purposes set forth.

10. In combination With the bifurcated draw' head having the shoulder q thereon, and the interlocking` lever j ournaled therein,the spring g, and sliding bar extending through the dra'w- CLINTON BROWNING.

l Witnesses: r

JAMES I. KAY, J. N. COOKE.

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